The Passionate Pilgrim

by

William Shakespeare

The Passionate Pilgrim is a publication of the Pennsylvania State University. The Pennsylvania State University is an equal opportunity university.

The Passionate Pilgrim is a publication of the Pennsylvania State University. This Portable Document File is furnished free and without any charge of any kind. Any person using this document file, for any purpose, and any way does so at his or her own risk. Neither the Pennsyvlania State University nor Jim Manis, Faculty Editor, nor anyone associated with the Pennsylvania State University assumes any responsibility for the material contained within the document or for the file as an electronic transmission in any way. The Passionate Pilgrim by William Shakespeare, the Pennsylvania State University, Jim Manis, Faculty Editor, Hazleton, PA 18201-1291 is a Portable Document File produced as part of an ongoing student publication project to bring classical works of literature, in English, to free and easy access of those wishing to make use of them. Copyright 1997 The Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State Unviersity is an equal opportunity University.

The Passionate Pilgrim

by

William Shakespeare
Note: Not all the lines that follow have been accurately attributed to William Shakespeare; perhaps as many as half were written by other writers. (The Editor) I.
When my love swears that she is made of truth, I do believe her, though I know she lies, That she might think me some untutord youth, Unskilful in the worlds false forgeries. Thus vainly thinking that she thinks me young, Although I know my years be past the best, I smiling credit her false-speaking tongue, Outfacing faults in love with loves ill rest. But wherefore says my love that she is young? And wherefore say not I that I am old? O! loves best habit is a soothing tongue, And age, in love, loves not to have years told. Therefore Ill lie with love, and love with me, Since that our faults in love thus anotherd be. 3

II.
Two loves I have of comfort and despair, Which like two spirits do suggest me still; The better angel is a man, right fair, The worser spirit a woman, colourd ill. To win me soon to hell, my female evil Tempteth my better angel from my side, And would corrupt a saint to be a devil, Wooing his purity with her fair pride: And whether that my angel be turnd fiend Suspect I may, but not directly tell; For being both to me, both to each friend, I guess one angel in anothers hell. The truth I shall not know, but live in doubt, Till my bad angel fire my good one out.

III.
Did not the heavenly rhetoric of thine eye, Gainst whom the world could not hold argument, Persuade my heart to this false perjury? Vows for thee broke deserve not punishment. A woman I forswore; but I will prove, Thou being a goddess, I forswore not thee: My vow was earthly, thou a heavenly love; Thy grace being gaind cures all disgrace in me. My vow was breath, and breath a vapour is; Then thou, fair sun, that on this earth dost shine, Exhale this vapour vow; in thee it is: If broken, then it is no fault of mine. If by me broke, what fool is not so wise To break an oath, to win a paradise?

IV.
Sweet Cytherea, sitting by a brook With young Adonis, lovely, fresh, and green, Did court the lad with many a lovely look, Such looks as none could look but beautys queen. She told him stories to delight his ear; She showd him favours to allure his eye; To win his heart, she touchd him here and there, Touches so soft still conquor chastity. But whether unripe years did want conceit, Or he refusd to take her figurd proffer, The tender nibbler would not touch the bait, But smile and jest at every gentle offer: Then fell she on her back, fair queen, and toward: He rose and ran away; ah! fool too forward.

V.
If love make he forsworn, how shall I swear to love? O, never faith could hold, if not to beauty vowd! Though to myself forsworn, to thee Ill constant prove; Those thoughts, to me like oaks, to thee like osiers bowd. Study his bias leaves, and makes his book thine eyes, Where all those pleasures live that art can comprehend. If knowledge be the mark, to know thee shall suffice; Well learned is that tongue tha well can thee commend; All ignorant that soul that sees thee without wonder; Which is to me some praise, that I thy parts admire: Thine eye Joves lightning seems, thy voice his dreadful thunder, Which, not to anger bent, is music and sweet fire. Celestial as thou art, O! do not love that wrong, To sing heavens praise with such an earthly tongue.

VI.
Scarce had the sun dried up the dewy morn, And scarce the herd gone to the hedge for shade, When Cytherea, all in love forlorn, A longing tarreance for Adonis made Under an osier growing by a brook, A brook where Adon usd to cool his spleen: Hot was the day; she hotter that did look For his approach, that often there had been. Anon he comes, and throws his mantle by, And stood stark naked on the brooks green brim: The sun lookd on the world with glorious eye, Yet not so wistly as this queen on him: He, spying her, bouncd in, whereas he stood: O Jove, quoth she, why was not I a flood!

VII.
Fair is my love, but not so fair as fickle; Mild as a dove, but neither true nor trusty; Brighter than glass, and yet, as glass is, brittle; Softer than wax, and yet, as iron, rusty: A lily pale, with damask dye to grace her, None fairer, nor none falser to deface her. Her lips to mine how often hath she joind, Between each kiss her oaths of true love swearing! How many tales to please me hath she coind, Dreading my love, the loss thereof still fearing! Yet in the midst of all her pure protestings, Her faith, her oaths, her tears and all were jestings. She burnd with love, as straw with fire flameth; She burnd out love, as soon as straw outburneth; She framd the love, and yet she foild the framing; She bade love last, and yet she fell a-turning. Was this a lover, or a lecher whether? Bad in the best, though excellent in neither.

VIII.
If music and sweet poetry agree, As they must needs, the sister and the brother, Then must the love be great twixt thee and me, Because thou lovst the one, and I the other. Dowland to thee is dear, whose heavenly touch Upon the lute doth ravish human sense; Spenser to me, whose deep conceit is such As, passing all conceit, needs no defence. Thou lovst to hear the sweet melodious sound That Phbus lute, the queen of music, makes; And I in deep delight am chiefly drownd Whenas himself to singing he betakes. One god is god of both, as poets feign; One knight loves both, and both in thee remain.

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IX.
Fair was the morn when the fair queen of love, [This line is missing.] Paler for sorrow than her milk-white dove, For Adons sake, a youngster proud and wild; Her stand she takes upon a steep-up hill: Anon Adonis comes with horn and hounds; She, silly queen, with more than loves good will, Forbade the boy he should not pass those grounds: Once, quoth she, did I see a fair sweet youth Here in these brakes deep-wounded with a boar, Deep in the thigh, a spectacle of ruth! See, in my thigh, quoth she, here was the sore. She showed hers; he saw more wounds than one, And blushing fled, and left her all alone.

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X.
Sweet rose, fair flower, untimely pluckd, soon vaded, Pluckd in the bud, and vaded in the spring! Bright orient pearl, alack! too timely shaded; Fair creature, killd too soon by deaths sharp sting! Like a green plum that hangs upon a tree, And falls, through wind, before the fall should be. I weep for thee, and yet no cause I have; For why thou leftst me nothing in thy will: And yet thou leftst me more than I did crave; For why I craved nothing of thee still: O yes, dear friend, I pardon crave of thee, Thy discontent thou didst bequeath to me.

XI.
Venus, with young Adonis sitting by her Under a myrtle shade, began to woo him: She told the youngling how god Mars did try her, And as he fell to her, so fell she to him. Even thus, quoth she, the warlike god embracd me, And then she clippd Adonis in her arms; Even thus, quoth she, he seized on my lips, And with her lips on his did act the seizure; And as she fetched breath, away he skips, And would not take her meaning nor her pleasure, Ah! that I had my lady at this bay, To kiss and clip me till I run away.

XII.
Crabbed age and youth cannot live together: Youth is full of pleasure, age is full of care; Youth like summer morn, age like winter weather; Youth like summer brave, age like winter bare. Youth is full of sport, ages breath is short; Youth is nimble, age is lame; Youth is hot and bold, age is weak and cold; Youth is wild, and age is tame. Age, I do abhor thee, youth, I do adore thee; O, my love, my love is young! Age, I do defy thee: O, sweet shepherd, hie thee, For methinks thou stayst too long!

XIII.
Beauty is but a vain and doubtful good: A shining gloss that vadeth suddenly; A flower that dies when first it gins to bud; A brittle glass thats broken presently: A doubtful good, a gloss, a glass, a flower, Lost, vaded, broken, dead within an hour. And as goods lost are seld or never found, As vaded gloss no rubbing will refresh, As flowers dead lie witherd on the ground, As broken glass no cement can redress, So beauty blemishd once s for ever lost, In spite of physic, painting, pain, and cost.
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XIV.
Good night, good rest. Ah! neither be my share: She bade good night that kept my rest away; And daffd me to a cabin hangd with care, To descant on the doubts of my decay. Frewell, quoth she, and come again to-morrow: Fare well I could not, for I suppd with sorrow. Yet at my parting sweetly did she smile, In scorn or friendship, nill I conster whether: T may be, she joyd to jest at my exile, T may be, again to make me wander thither: Wander, a word for shadows like myself, As take the pain, but cannot pluck the pelf. Lord! how mine eyes throw gazes to the east; My heart doth charge the watch; the morning rise Doth cite each moving sense from idle rest. Not daring trust the office of mine eyes, While Philomela sits and sings, I sit and mark, And wish her lays were tuned like the lark; For she doth welcome daylight with her ditty, And drives away dark dismal-dreaming night: The night so packd, I post unto my pretty; Heart hath his hope, and eyes their wished sight; Sorrow changd to solace, solace misd with sorrow; For why, she sighd and bade me come to-morrow.

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Were I with her, the night would post too soon; But now are minutes added to the hours; To spite me now, each minute seems a moon; Yet not for me, shine sun to succour flowers! Pack night, peep day; good day, of night now borrow: Short, night, to-night, and length thyself to-morrow.

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